


What are the odds?

by Mystrothedefender



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-30
Updated: 2015-09-04
Packaged: 2018-04-18 02:17:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4688729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mystrothedefender/pseuds/Mystrothedefender
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hunger games AU GerIta story. Ludwig and Feliciano, children of different districts, find themselves as tributes for the 22nd hungergames, they both know they have almost no chance of surviving, how will they get through this?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Feliciano smiled to himself as he got dressed into the fanciest clothes he owned, stuff his father had designed for the capitol. A long red frilled jacket and a deep blue v necked shirt with sequins on it that shined like diamonds. He'd never felt so fancy. He love dressing up, as scary as reaping day was for most people, Feliciano took solace in the fact that he looked good, it helped him push the doubts and fear to the back of his mind, helped him to smile for the cameras.

Lovino looked him up and down from the doorframe, "You look great," he said softly. Feliciano could tell from the tone of his voice that he was forcing himself to say that. All days apart from this one he was as snarky and rude as could be, but Feliciano knew he cared, why else would he have offered to sacrificed himself every year prior.

This year he couldn't, last year was his brother's last year, and this was Feliciano's last year. His name was in as few times as possible and there was almost no chance of it getting picked, he had a feeling he was going to be ok.

He looked down at himself, sighing softly, knowing this was the last time he'd get to dress this well, from now on he'd be making the clothes not wearing them.

"You're going to be fine," Lovino said, hearing Feliciano's sigh, walking up to him and rubbing his arm, smiling at him in the mirror.

Feliciano nodded, "I know Lovi, I'm gunna be fine," he let out another sigh, holding the rosary that hung round his neck and closing his eyes for a moment, "God wouldn't make me do it…"

Lovino smiled, "I know," he let out a small huff, pulling Feliciano into a tight hug. "You're going to be ok I promise."

Feliciano chuckled softly, "Lovino don't worry, I'll be fine, I won't get picked, I know I won't." He smiled as he pulled away, smoothing his clothes out and smiling, "I look nice right?" he asked, trying to change the subject, "Can you help me with my eyeliner? I want it to be perfect and you've got such steady hands."

Lovino nodded, sighing softly, he knew Feli was just trying to be brave… but what if his name was picked? There'd be nothing he could do to protect him, he'd loose his baby brother…

He tried not to think about it, focussing on making Feliciano look pretty.

"There…" he said after a moment, smiling at his work.

Feliciano looked in the mirror, smiling widely, "It looks perfect Lovi, thank you." He gave the taller boy a hug and let out a soft huff, biting his lip. "We should go," he added.

Lovino nodded, "Yeah I want to get a good spot. Have you eaten?"

"Yeah."

"Ok good, let's go then."

He felt Lovino give him a soft pat on the back, trying to control his breathing and not get overwhelmed. They met up with his Papa, Roma, just outside the arena, the man had gone to sort out Feliciano's papers in advance as he usually did.

"My son…" he said weakly, pulling Feliciano into a tight hug, patting his back and kissing him on the forehead. "Are you ready?"

"Yes Papa," Feliciano said weakly, forcing himself to smile as he felt himself grow more anxious, he could see the other children filing in, some of the younger ones crying to their older siblings.

He wouldn't let himself cry, he was the oldest one here now, he wasn't the biggest or the strongest or the smartest, but he was the oldest and everyone knew it, so he had to at least try and stay strong.

"I love you Feliciano," he heard his Papa say.

"I love you too, I'll see you later," he replied, turning to Lovino, "I love you too Lovino."

Lovino nodded, "I love you Feli." Feliciano could hear a shake in his voice, he could tell how nervous they both were.

He walked away from them, giving them a short wave as he joined the line to enter the hall. Smiling softly at the younger children to reassure them, they had nothing to worry about, it would all be ok. He clutched his rosary and said a short prayer for himself, another for the poor soul who was picked this year.

This was it, the last time he'd do this, after he left today he could go on and have a normal life, become a tailor like his Papa, make fabulous clothes, maybe even become famous.

He let his head fill with his fantasy as the people on stage introduced themselves, and the usual 'historical' videos began to play.

It was going to be amazing, he'd have his place in his father's workshop, then eventually he and Lovino would take over, they could start a new fashion trend, it'd be amazing.

He just needed to get through this, then his real life could begin.

He stood up straight as a man walked to centre stage, dressed similarly to himself but in all green, contrasted with his red tipped hair. Feliciano couldn't help noticing how beautiful he was. He wished he could make clothes like that himself one day.

"We'll start with the ladies," the man on stage began, walking over to the large bowl and pulling out a piece of paper, the fanfare preparing to play.

A deafening silence fell over the crowd, Feliciano could almost hear the heartbeats of the people surrounding him.

"Alice Vargas."

Feliciano felt the colour drain from his face, his mouth dropping open, he turned his head, searching from his cousin's face in the crowd.

He saw her, her eyes darting between her and he sister's before she forced a smile and smoothed her sun-yellow dress, saying something to the youngest of them, patting the girl's head and walking towards the front.

"Nice to meet you Alice," the man on the stage said, taking her hand to help her up the stairs.

Feliciano continued to watch, his mouth hinged, unable to believe they'd picked her.

She was the same age as him, and such a fiery girl… She had a chance.

The crowd cheered for her, Feliciano trying to join in, but he could feel his will fading. He watched her walk to the corner of the stage, and watched the well-dressed handsome man walk over to the other bowl.

He felt himself tense as the paper was pulled out.

He couldn't be picked.

But then… if Alice had been picked, who's to say his wouldn't be?

"Feliciano Vargas."

He felt a weight hit his gut, tears springing to his eyes. He had to have heard wrong.

They couldn't have said his name, it was impossible.

"Mr Feliciano Vargas?"

He turned his head at the sound of a shout, seeing Lovino fall to his knees, screaming in anguish.

The crowd was cheering but he couldn't hear anything, he couldn't feel his legs, all he could feel was his heart in his throat, his tears running down his face, he let out a tortured scream of "No!"

He felt his legs give way, and felt a rush of pain as his head hit the floor, his vision going dark at the edges.

He let out a loud scream, feeling his soul tear itself apart. Why would this happen? Why would god do this to him?

How could this happen?

He felt someone grab at him, trying to pull him by the arm, he pushed them back and tried to pull away, but someone else appeared behind him, he couldn't see his face.

The man pulled out a baton, giving a swift hard hit to the back of his head.

….

Feliciano let out a groan as his eyes flickered open, he saw his Papa standing over him.

Had it been a dream?

"Papa, I…" he mumbled softly as he got up, letting out another moan and touching the back of his head, he looked down at himself and saw he was still wearing his reaping clothes… it hadn't been a dream.

The older man pulled him into a hug, "I'm so sorry Feliciano," he said softly, rubbing his back.

Feliciano felt himself burst into tears, hugging him back and pawing at his shirt.

He wasn't meant to be chosen, this wasn't meant to happen.

He couldn't believe it.

Roma pulled out of the hug, he pulled away and looked around the luxurious room, only one thing came to mind.

"Where's Lovi?" he asked, "I want to see Lovi."

"He's…" the man bit his lip, "He's trying to get them to change their mind, he's trying to get them to let him go in your place."

Feliciano shook his head, "He can't do that… I-It's against the rules."

Roma nodded, "I know, I tried to tell him but he wouldn't listen. I…" he closed his eyes, "I don't know if you'll get to see him before you go."

Tears came to Feli's eyes again. "I need to see him, I won't go without saying goodbye."

As he said the last word the door opened, Lovino stepping in with tears in his eyes. "They won't let me," he said weakly, "They just kept telling me to shut up and come to say goodbye."

Feliciano forced himself to his feet, ignoring the flood of dizziness that almost overcame him and staggering to Lovino, hugging him and sobbing into his shirt.

Lovino stood still for a moment before letting out a sob, holding him tight and kissing his cheek. "I love you Feliciano, y-you fucking… Why did you have to get picked? The one year I can't save you."

Feliciano shook his head. He didn't know why this'd happened.

"I'm so sorry," he said weakly. "I love you Lovi, you're my best friend."

Lovino let out a loud sob, taking Feliciano's hands.

They both knew Feliciano wouldn't survive this.

The look they shared said it.

"I'll name my sons after you," he said softly, "I'll tell them all about you."

Feliciano nodded, blinking away his tears, "Thank you Lovino. I-I'll think of you."

He jumped as the door opened again, and the handsome man who'd been on stage earlier walked in. "If it isn't my drama queen," he said with a smile, "Are we ready to go?"

Feliciano felt Lovino's grip tighten on his hands. He forced himself to look over at the man, "…I think so."

"Good," he said. He looked at Lovino and Roma, "If we could have some time alone..?"

Roma nodded, walking over to put his hand on Lovi's shoulder, looking Feliciano up and down. "We love you Feliciano," he said weakly, leaning over to kiss his forehead, "You're a smart boy, you can get through this."

"I'll try my best Papa, I love you."

Lovino looked down at their hands before slowly loosening his grip. "You're going to make us all proud Feliciano, I know it."

Feliciano nodded, more tears making their way down his face.

He didn't know what to say, what do you say the last time you see someone you love?

He watched the man usher them out, feeling a sob escape him as the door closed. He moved to sit down, putting his head in his hands, letting his tears fall onto the floor, forming a small pool.

The man walked over to him and rubbed his shoulder, "It's ok… I know it seems hard, but once you get over the shock you'll be able to enjoy it." He swallowed hard, "… You've got a poor stature for this, but that doesn't mean you're going to lose, the sneaky ones are always the best, and the most fun to watch. Just focus on that and you've got a good chance."

Feliciano nodded, "Ok," he whimpered.

"Don't give up hope yet. We're all rooting for you."


	2. Chapter 2

Ludwig flinched as he heard his name yelled from the stage. He looked around, everyone who knew him staring up at him, waiting for his reaction.

He exhaled slowly, swallowing the lump in his throat and biting his lip softly, walking through the crowd of children and towards the steps.

He could feel his heart pounding in his head, he felt dizzy, faint, but he wouldn't let himself break down, he wouldn't let himself react like that kid from district one had.

There was no way he'd make a fool of himself, he wanted his family to be proud of him, he wanted his district to be proud of him. Because of him none of the other children here would die this year, they were all safe because of him.

He looked out over the silent crowd.

"Ladies and gentlemen, your male tribute for district 7, Ludwig Beilschmidt."

Ludwig bowed his head, hearing the crowd yell out for him, thanking him for his sacrifice.

"Thank you," he said loudly, frowning softly and waiting until the noise died down, "Thank you," he repeated.

"Anything you'd like to say to your district?" the blond over dressed man asked him, holding out the microphone.

Ludwig took a deep breath, "I don't ask for your applause, only for you to be kind to the people I leave behind."

The man smiled, "Oh isn't that sweet. Now, Ludwig, if you'll follow that man there while I wrap up, he'll take you to the back room."

Ludwig nodded, following the man the district representative had pointed to, letting out a deep breath as the door closed behind him. He hung his head, he felt so sick.

"I need a drink," he said quickly.

The man nodded, leading him quickly through to a room which had a sink in it. Ludwig moved quickly to the sink, feeling his stomach tense and contort. He vomited into the sink, coughing and hanging his head over the bowl, panting softly, he turned on the tap to wash the stuff away, scooping some water into his mouth and spitting it out, giving his head a soft shake, closing his eyes.

For some reason the noise of the running water calmed him more than anything, working like white noise.

He was all too happy to see his family when they came in, Gilbert running up to him and pulling him into a hug, "You're going to do great Lud, you'll kill every last one of them and you'll be back here in no time."

"Yeah I know," Ludwig said falsely, forcing a smile and patting his brother on the back. "Where's father?"

"He'll just be a second, that capitol jerk is talking to him."

Ludwig nodded, "Ok," he said softly.

"Hey," Gilbert said with a smile, "You're going to be fine, don't worry ok? You're going to win this! No way my awesome little brother's gunna take shit from anyone other than me, right?" he slapped his arm playfully.

Ludwig nodded, smiling, "Yeah…"

Gilbert chuckled softly, "Now's no time to start acting like a pussy…" he sighed softly, pulling away slightly, "I know why you're so worried… You can put them out of their misery, quickly, don't make them suffer. You know what some of those kids are like, you can spare them that."

Ludwig swallowed hard and nodded, closing his eyes for a moment, "Ok," he said firmly. "I'll do that."

He looked over as the door opened, smiling at the thought of getting to speak to his father. His smile dropped as he realised it wasn't him, but the blond man who represented the district.

"We have to go," he said softly.

"What?" Gilbert snapped, "But our father hasn't seen him yet."

The man nodded, "I know, I talked to him and he says goodbye, but he was uh… Well, emotionally compromised, and he didn't want you to see him like that."

"What?!" Gilbert snapped again, "That fucking bastard, I'll kill him!"

Ludwig put his hand on Gilbert's arm, "Gil, no… it's ok, I mean it, don't worry."

Gilbert turned to him, letting out a huff before nodding, "Ok… If you say so."

"I love you Gilbert," Ludwig stated, smiling softly.

Gilbert swallowed hard, forcing a smile, "I love you too Lud," he chuckled weakly, "You're talking like it's the last time I'm going to see you."

"Gil…"

"No, come on, I'm gunna see you again, you'll come back the winner, you'll be the hero of the district."

"How do you know that?"

"Because I do," Gilbert said firmly, frowning softly, "You're going to come back, you'll do fine."

Ludwig nodded as Gilbert moved away, "Ok… ok… I guess I'll… I'll see you when I'm champion then," he chuckled softly.

Gilbert nodded as he walked to the door, "Yeah…"

The blond man led Gilbert out, turning to smile at Ludwig. "Why don't we get going?" he paused for a moment, "Oh I'm Arthur by the way, we're going to be spending a lot of time together. Come along now."

….

Ludwig sat on one of the many seats that lined his compartment of the train, his head resting in his hands, deep breaths calming him. He tried to focus on the noise of the moving train rather than the events of the past few hours.

The noise, he couldn't get the noise out of his head. The girl from his district, he wasn't sure where she was right now, but he couldn't get her face out of his head.

She'd only just turned 12.

He'd seen her around the village, always had a toy cart with her, towing it around, pretending to help her father with his work despite only being able to haul a few short logs on it.

In the next few weeks she'd die, he knew that much.

He hoped he wouldn't have to do it. He didn't want to kill anyone, he'd never wanted to kill anyone.

He felt sick…

He jolted as the door opened, the girl coming in smiling, "Hi Ludwig."

"Hello… uh," he frowned, through stress he'd forgotten her name.

She giggled softly, the noise turning Ludwig's stomach, "It's Julia Maria."

Ludwig looked the girl up and down, long white hair falling almost down to her waist, wearing a pale blue dress with a large bow on her hip. "Why do you sound so happy?"

She shrugged, "I've never been on a train before, it's so awesome I can't handle it."

"Aren't you going to miss your family?" Ludwig asked, his voice almost devoid of emotion.

She shook her head, "No, they were kinda mean."

He frowned, "But you're…"

He forced himself to stop. He couldn't bring himself to say it 'you're going to die'. He couldn't say it.

He could barely even think it.

What if it were he who killed her?

What if there were others like her? Barely old enough to know what was going on.

He shook his head and got to his feet, walking straight past her and into the bathroom. He sat on the bright white toilet seat and held his head, closing his eyes.

He couldn't cry, he couldn't…

He was going to have to kill children, he was going to have to fight for his life.

He wished his name hadn't been picked.

A sob escaped him, ripping from his throat, tears pouring from his eyes and dripping down his face. He couldn't do this, he couldn't.

He opened his eyes as someone knocked on the door.

"Ludwig? Ludwig it's Arthur…" the man sighed softly, "You know we can hear you out here."

Ludwig bit his tongue, forcing himself to be quiet, another sob rocking him, though this time he kept himself quiet.

"Ludwig please come out," the man said, giving the door another knock.

Ludwig shook his head, "No I'm ok," he said, the words leaving him with a strange whine.

He must sound so pitiful…

"You're not ok Ludwig, and that's ok, but you've got to learn to keep it under control, the public aren't going to like you if you don't keep up that stoic persona you've got." Ludwig heard the man's tone grow lighter, "I mean it, the way you handled the crowd back at your district, it was perfect."

The way he'd reacted must have looked good for the camera, but at the time all he'd been thinking of was that him being picked had allowed those children to live another year.

He hoped they'd make the most of it.

He forced himself to calm down, getting up and looking in the mirror, his eyes were puffy and red, filled with anger and sadness. He washed his face and wiped his eyes, exhaling softly.

He opened the door after deciding he looked… more presentable.

Arthur smiled back at him, "Are you ok?" he reached out to pull him out by the arm, "I know this is all a shock to you, but once you get used to it it'll be fine."

Ludwig grit his teeth, as if he'd ever get used to this, he'd never get used to the idea that he was expected to kill children, never get used to the idea that he'd never see his family again.

He was going to miss them so much. They depended on him, what were they going to do now..?

He tried not to think about it, he'd only make himself upset.

"Now, uh, your quarters are ready if you'd like to see, Julia Marie is already in there. She needs a big strong boy like you on her side Ludwig…"

Ludwig nodded, letting out an exhale and walking down the hall, he stopped by a large wooden door, "Here?" he asked; it was the only door they'd not been allowed through until now.

Arthur nodded, "That's right, go on in and make yourself comfortable. The chefs will cook you whatever you want."

Ludwig opened the door, the room was… larger than Ludwig felt it should be able to be, bookshelves lining one wall and sofas lining the other, a small TV in the corner. As he walked though he realised that it had everything that his dream home would have.

Julia Marie was playing on one of the sofa, jumping on it, holding a strange toy in one hand.

Why didn't she get it? Why wasn't she as scared as the other 12 year olds Ludwig had seen?

He couldn't stand it, he hoped the others wouldn't be like this.


	3. Chapter 3

Feliciano had spent the last however many hours scared, almost shaking, clutching to his cousin at every chance he got. She would tell him to get ahold of himself and he'd try but after a while he'd feel the fear creep back over him.

He jumped at every movement, flinching at every sound. He knew soon enough they'd be in the arena, his body was preparing itself.

The opening ceremony was a blur, he shook violently the whole time. He wished Lovino was the one doing his makeup, not this woman he'd never met before. The only think that made him calm even slightly was the fact that he was given some absolutely divine clothes to wear.

After a night's sleep he felt a little better, but he was quickly thrust into a room filled with work out equipment, weapons and allsorts.

So many faces he'd seen the day before but didn't really recognise… They were all eager to train, but he didn't want to, he felt sick.

There was a sofa in the training area, where he and the other tributes were going to spend the majority of their time, he had no physical strength to hone, so he sat on it, watching the others and trying his best to remember the things they were doing.

One of the older tributes walked towards him, Feliciano remembered him being with district 7, though he wasn't sure, the first day had been such a haze he couldn't remember anything. The blond boy let out a small huff of exhaustion and sat down. Feliciano had been watching him for the past hour, he'd been training with the girl from his district, a tiny girl with long hair.

"Do you know her? The girl from your district?" Feliciano asked, his voice shaking slightly, "I know the girl from mine, she's my cousin, I can't believe we're in here together. We used to play hide and seek together when I was younger, I've always been good at hiding but she always found me no problem…" he looked down at his feet, the black work-out shoes he'd been assigned. "I hope she doesn't' find me this time…"

The boy looked at him, letting out a small grunt and wiping his forehead with the back of his hand, his breath uneven and shaky through fatigue.

"What's your name anyway?" Feliciano asked, forcing a smile.

"Why would you care what my name is?" the boy said.

Feliciano shrugged, "I feel weird talking to someone whose name I don't know."

The boy stared at him. There was so much pain in his eyes, easily mistaken for sternness, but Feliciano could tell.

"…I'm Feliciano," Feli offered, his voice softening.

The boy sighed softly, looking down.

"I don't want to kill anyone," he stated, knitting his fingers together in his lap. "But I will."

Feliciano let out a nervous chuckle, shying away from the man. He'd only wanted a friendly conversation, he didn't expect anything so heavy.

"I-I wasn't even meant to be here. My brother usually offers to volunteer in my place, he couldn't this year, my name wasn't even in that many times," he shook his head, "I don't know if I can kill anyone, I-I don't want to, I hate blood. I just want to make pretty clothes…"

The blond boy let out a soft sigh, "…It's your last year, ja? Mine too…" he swallowed hard, "I have to kill children, half of them don't even know what's happening."

Feliciano nodded, "I know… I-I'm used to being the baby of my family, now I have to kill actual babies... I'm not a killer…"

The boy looked at him, nodding softly. "I'm Ludwig," he said softly. "I need some water."

Feliciano smiled, taking that as an invitation, he nodded and got to his feet, "Me too, why don't you come with me. You can meet my cousin!"

Ludwig let out a soft huff and nodded, getting to his feet, he began to walk towards the water cooler, taking one of the paper cups and filling it. The boy looked back at Feliciano, taking a sip.

Feliciano followed him over, smiling weakly as he poured out some water, he looked round for Alice, spotting her and moving his hand to wave her over, "Alice! Come and say hi."

Alice looked over from the agility exercise she was doing, frowning softly as she looked Ludwig up and down and letting out a huff. "I don't socialise with the enemy."

"Enemy..?" Feliciano frowned, looking over at Ludwig, "We're enemies…?"

Ludwig finished off his drink, throwing the cup in the nearby bin, "We're going to have to kill each other. If you think that means we're enemies, then yes."

"But we don't want to kill each other, you said you don't want to. Enemies want to kill each other."

"Then I guess your cousin wants to kill me."

Feliciano's eyes widened, "No no, she wouldn't want to kill anyone, she's really nice, I promise!"

Ludwig glanced at him and huffed softly, "I should be getting back to my uh… Julia Marie, the girl from my district."

Feliciano nodded, "Oh ok… Can I meet her?"

Ludwig shook his head, "I don't want her to know anyone, I don't want her to think they're her friends."

Feliciano bit his lip and nodded again, "Ok," he smiled weakly, "I just like talking to people…"

Ludwig nodded as he started to walk off, "Well it was nice to meet you."

…

Feliciano tried to calm himself as he ate dinner, the representative of his district sitting across from him, staring him down.

"So you just sit there? Come on, you're going to seem useless. The other tributes are going to come after you specifically."

Feliciano looked up, glancing to Alice and hoping she might offer something. "There's nothing there I'm good at. I-I'm not good at anything."

Alice bit her lip and nodded, "He's not lying, he can't throw, he can't shoot, he can't even lift half his body weight."

Allister furrowed his brow, letting out a small breath. "You can't sit there and do nothing. Do you know how to use a knife?"

Feliciano let out a small whine, "No. I told you I don't know anything. I can't do anything."

Alice sighed, "He's spent his whole life training to make dresses for you rich arseholes. He's not done anything else."

The red haired man huffed and shook his head, "So, maybe, camouflage? You're good with a needle and thread right? Maybe something along those lines?"

Feliciano focussed on his food, holding his head in his hand. He'd never thought he'd have to use his trade to kill people, he didn't know if it were even possible.

He looked up, swallowing hard, "I guess I can make traps?" he said weakly, "And I can hide."

Alice nodded, "He always won hide and seek, I was the only person who could find him."

"That's something at least," Allister said with a huff, "Let's just hope it doesn't come down between you two," he forced a smiled, "Even though that'd make a hell of a story…"

Feliciano and Alice shared a look, Alice swallowed hard before looking back down at her food. Feliciano felt his heart go cold; she would do it. It hadn't occurred to him before how Alice actually felt, that Ludwig boy was right. As soon as they entered that arena they'd become enemies.

He felt his chest tighten, and a lump form in his throat.

"I have to go," he said weakly, getting down from the table and walking quickly towards his room.

He closed his eyes as he closed the door behind him, feeling his face grow hot, feeling a soft sob leave his throat. He'd tried so hard not to break down since what'd happened at the reaping, but he was alone now, he didn't have to pretend he wasn't scared or upset.

He slid down the back of the door, opening his eyes and looking across his room, wiping his face with the back of his hand, not daring to get his new shirt wet.

He had everything he'd always wanted here, but it meant nothing. His brother wasn't here to enjoy it with him, or his father… The only family he had here was preparing herself to kill him.

"Lovi I miss you…" he whimpered, letting out another small sob.


	4. Chapter 4

"All dressed and ready?!"

Ludwig jolted slightly at the sound of Arthur's shrill voice, bringing him out of his calm meditative state. He let out a small huff and nodded, getting to his feet, looking around for Julia Marie, smiling at the sight of her on a chair on the other side of the room, she looked so cute and innocent, in the moment before Ludwig remembered why they were here he was almost happy.

"Good," Arthur said, patting Ludwig softly on the arm, "We should be on our way, Alfred won't wait forever to interview you you know."

Ludwig nodded, holding his hand out to Julia Marie, smiling softly at her, "You know what to do Julia? Just keep smiling and try to give happy answers."

Julia nodded up at him, looking over at Arthur before letting out a soft huff and looking down at herself, "This dress is too frilly, I'm going to trip over."

Arthur nodded as he began to lead them out of the room and towards the lift, "We're playing on your cuteness Julia, remember? You've got to look as fresh faced and childlike as possible, it'll get you more sponsors."

"But I am a child," she said after a moment, wiping her long hair out of her eyes and shaking her head slightly, "If this Alfred guy is rude to me I won't be able to keep being cute."

Arthur shook his head as they stepped into the lift, pressing the button for the ground floor and giving Julia Marie a soft smile, "He won't be rude, he's a perfectly lovely man, he and I have been friends for years, we have an agreement that he'll be nice to my tributes," he sighed, "He does have a strange temperament though, I get the feeling he doesn't agree with what happens here."

"Anyone who does needs their head examining," Ludwig growled. He leant back against the wall of the lift, squeezing Julia Marie's hand and forcing a smile, "You just focus on that meal we're going to have later."

The girl's eyes widened and her mouth split into a smile, "Yeah! I hope they have those sausage things, they're great."

Ludwig heard Julia Marie gasp slightly as the doors opened, she let go of Ludwig's hand and walked fast out of the lift.

"Julia," Ludwig said softly after her, walking out after her, he jolted as Arthur took his sleeve.

"Let her have some fun, Ludwig. Don't tell her what to do tonight, just let her have fun."

Ludwig sighed and nodded his head, bowing slightly, swayed by Arthur's almost concerned tone. Say what you will about people in the capitol, but the people who had direct contact with them did seem to care under all their pretences.

The older man cleared his throat, "Now, Ludwig, do you know what you're doing?"

He shook his head; he knew he was being interviewed but he had no idea where he was going or when.

"There's a buffet table in the other room, I suggest you go and get something to eat. Alfred will be through in a few minutes to introduce himself and then you will sit on the sofas and wait until you're called in for your interview."

Ludwig nodded, "Ok sir."

Arthur pointed him in the direction of the door, "Go on then."

Ludwig nodded and walked through, looking over the spread and licking his lips, he didn't usually feel hungry when he was stressed but everything looked so delicious.

He began picking at the food, taking what looked most appetising and putting it on his plate. They had delicacies from each district better cooked than he had ever seen them, sausages, soups, chips more golden than he'd ever thought possible, it looked so amazing.

The other tributes seemed to be acting strange, he noticed as he tried to find a place to sit, they were talking amongst themselves as if they were friends, didn't they realise that soon enough they'd be murdering each other?

He huffed and sat in an isolated seat, staring at his food and realising that he wasn't hungry after all. He wasn't sure how he'd got caught up in it, for a moment he'd forgotten why he was here and had almost felt like himself again. He wanted to be alone but he couldn't, least of all now.

His eyes lifted from his plate as he felt someone sit next to him. That boy from district one again.

"Ludwig, it's me Feliciano!" the boy said happily, "Look at all this food, isn't it great," he chuckled, "I hope I don't get nervous and throw up on stage, that would be so bad!"

Ludwig frowned and looked at the massive pile of food on the boys plate, "Maybe you shouldn't eat all that then..?" he asked dryly.

The boy glanced down at it and smiled, "I eat a lot when I get anxious. I have gained 5 pounds since I got here, isn't that funny?" he let out a hollow chuckle, his smile dropping for a moment before he began to eat, picking up a sausage with his fingers and taking a bite.

Ludwig paused for a moment, unable to fathom the air of denial he got from Feliciano, was everyone else like that too? Just ignoring what was happening to them until they had to acknowledge it? That would explain why everyone was acting so weird. He couldn't ignore it though, it was impossible. He could see every way in which he could kill each of them now, the thought he might soon have to made him sick.

"I know you don't want to kill anyone," Feliciano said quietly, "So maybe we could be friends? Just until we get into the arena… I miss having friends. I don't like being scared of everyone."

"What about your cousin?" Ludwig asked, frowning softly and picking up a chip with his fork, popping it into his mouth, almost moaning with how nice it tasted.

Feliciano shook his head, "I don't want to talk about it. Allister said tonight was meant to be a happy night, I don't want to think about sad things, like the arena or… my cousin wanting to kill me." He shook his head again, taking another bite of his food.

Ludwig nodded, he didn't really like the idea of pretending it wasn't happening, but he could see the point of it. "What do you want to talk about then?" The boy shrugged. Ludwig looked Feliciano up and down, seeing fear creeping back into Feliciano's face "…You look nice?" he said, hoping a distraction might calm him down.

Feliciano forced a smile, "Oh, thankyou," his smile widened as he looked down at the deep purple suit he was wearing, "I love getting dressed up, I like looking pretty."

Ludwig gave a small nod, "You look very pretty."

"Thankyou," Feliciano said again, his smile widening. "You look nice too. I love the fashion of the capitol, it's so over the top, it really makes a statement I think, and it's all so comfortable and soft even though it doesn't look it, I don't know how they do it. When I work in my father's shop I'm going to learn though, it'll be so interesting to…"

A small frown came to Feliciano's face as yet another horrible realisation hit him; that would never happen. He wasn't going back, he'd never get to learn how to make those lovely clothes, he wouldn't get to work alongside his father.

Ludwig frowned as Feliciano became silent again, his eyes widening as he heard the boy let out a small whimper. "Don't get upset Feliciano, it's ok… you might win, then you can still do all of that."

Feliciano shook his head, a small laugh coming from him, "No, that won't happen, I know I won't win. All I can do is hide, an-and make traps, but I can't survive doing that forever."

"It's happened before, you never know."

Feliciano looked up, slowly looking round the room. "But that still means all these people will die…"

Ludwig huffed, his eyes settling on Julia Marie, an odd feeling of guilt and self-hatred welling in his stomach. "That's just how it has to be."

Arthur huffed and smiled as he watched his charge, he sincerely hoped that he'd be able to relax and have some fun, Ludwig was the most uptight tribute he'd had in years, it was a little scary, Arthur had no doubt he'd win though. As for the little girl… he wasn't so sure. She had spirit but nothing much else. Ludwig cared so much for her and he wasn't very good at hiding it, someone could easily use her against him.

He smiled at some of the other adults there, waving to his brother and looking over towards the back room, where he knew Alfred would be emerging from any moment.

Such a handsome man, one of the main reasons Arthur had gotten into this job.

He smiled as the door opened and Alfred came in, he walked up and raised his hand in hello. "Alfred, it's so nice to see you again."

Alfred pulled Arthur into a hug, "Artie!" he kissed him on the cheek before pulling away, "It's so great to see you bud, how have you been?"

"Oh uh," Arthur smiled, lifting his hand absently to rub the spot that Alfred had kissed, "I'm very well. I've been working with district four."

"I know," Alfred nodded, "You've got a really good chance this year, and believe me I know," he winked. "If I were you I'd go and talk to uh… what was her name, Elizabeth something? She seems to like your girl, you could probably get a sponsor from her."

Arthur smiled, "Oh thankyou Alfred, I'll look into it."

Alfred nodded, clasping his hands together, "Right! Now let's get this show on the road!" he chuckled, walking over to a microphone, "Tributes, hello! I hope you're enjoying your night. The show is going to be played on these two screens here," he pointed to the large monitors over his head, "Now, I need you to remember what order you come out in. First will be the tribute one boy, then girl, then the district 2 boy, then girl, and so on. If you could be ready to come out as soon as your predecessor comes back in that'd be great, but if you forget the staff will remind you. Ok?" he smiled, "Ok! Everyone have a great night! I've got a show to start."

Allister walked up to Feliciano, distracting him from his and Ludwig's conversation, he smiled at Ludwig before turning back to Feli.

"Kid, you're first, I know it's daunting but you'll do great I know it," he patted Feliciano hard on the shoulder. He looked down at his plate of food, "You got a couple of minutes so you can finish your food."

Feliciano looked down at his plate and nodded, taking the last few bites before putting the plate on the seat next to him. "Ok, I'm ready."

Ludwig smiled down at him, "Good luck Feliciano, they'll love you."

Feliciano smiled as he got to his feet, "Thankyou," he said weakly. He could feel himself shaking as he walked towards the hall that lead to the stage, he could hear noise echoing down, he looked up at the screen and swallowed hard, the bright lights flashing as Alfred shouted loudly in hello, he'd always hoped he'd see showmanship like this but not… like this.

Ludwig moved slowly to sit in front of the screen, trying not to let people see how eager he was to watch Feliciano's interview… truthfully he wasn't sure why he was. Why did it matter?

Feliciano was already sitting down, being questioned, he had a nervous smile on his face, his eyes blinking rapidly as if he were about to cry, hands balled up, tugging softly on the rich material of his jacket.

"You're a pretty small kid Feliciano, I think we're all wondering what kind of skills you'll bring to the arena," Alfred asked, smile splayed across his face, his eyes showing a genuine interest, as if he were trying to ease the young boy.

Feliciano paused for a moment, trying to seem confident as he answered, "Well I'm good at hiding," he began, his voice quivering a little, "I'm hard to catch, and if they can't catch me they can't kill me, so," he forced a confident smile, "you can't count me out."

Alfred chuckled softly, patting Feliciano on the arm, trying to calm him, "We wouldn't count you out in a million years."

Alfred smiled out at the cameras, god that makeup made him so look creepy, "So if you're after some stealth I think we've got it here." The audience laughed, though why Ludwig had no idea, it must be a capitol joke, or maybe they were being told how to react, like those old TV shows.

He turned back to Feliciano, his smile softening a little, "I think we've got a little more time left, before you go, would you let us know what you've enjoyed most about being in the capitol?"

Feliciano's fake smile broke, becoming real and wide, "Oh, the clothes, definitely the clothes, they're all so pretty, this material is so soft and perfect, I would sleep in a bed of it if I could."

Alfred nodded, smiling at having found Feliciano's comfort zone, "Oh really? You should feel this, it's like wearing a cloud." He pulled it off, "Here try it on, gimme yours."

Ludwig frowned as they exchanged jackets, and Feliciano began praising the tailor. He hoped that man wouldn't try anything like that with him, it would be so… excruciating. He could never act like that, not at a time like this.

He watched Feliciano leave the stage and take a seat in the front rows of the crowd and bit his lip, soon enough he'd be sitting there with him.


	5. Chapter 5

Feliciano felt dizzy and sick as he walked down the steps to sit down, he wasn't sure why, he'd felt almost happy a moment ago, maybe it was the adrenaline or something. Happiness seeped back into him as he found his chair, flopping down onto it and closing his eyes for a moment, thinking about his interview. Why hadn't Alfred talked to him about what happened at the reaping? Surely everyone wanted to know about that.

Was it that obvious how fragile he was?

In that moment he felt weaker than a newborn, he wanted to melt into his chair and never be seen again.

He was going to be the first to die, he knew it, everyone would come for him, the easiest to kill…

He was going to cry, he couldn't, he couldn't cry.

With a lump in his throat and heat in his cheeks he forced himself to look up at the stage, watching his cousin's interview without really paying attention, it felt like he was listening through water. He tried to listen but he simply couldn't, it took so much effort not to break down that he couldn't concentrate on anything else. He wasn't sure what he felt but it wasn't good, the feeling grew as his cousin walked towards him, smiling.

She sat down next to him and took his hand, "Feliciano you look like you're going to faint."

He could barely hear what she said, he forced a smile and nodded, "You did so good," he said weakly, even though it felt like he was shouting.

Alice frowned at him briefly, forcing a smile back on her face for the cameras. She moved her hand to rub his knee, making sure the cameras wouldn't pick it up. The last thing she wanted was for people to see her babying him and think he was her weakness.

Feliciano tried to ignore the dull numb feeling that filled his body, looking up at the stage with his usual smile on his face, trying to focus through his blurred vision and throbbing head.

By the time Ludwig, the boy from district 4, came to the stage he felt a little better, enough to make out words properly. He watched the boy walk mechanically across the stage, he seemed so scared, but he was so good at hiding it.

"Ludwig Beilschmidt," Alfred announced as the boy sat, "Now am I saying that right?" he said, leaning forward, "'Beilschmidt'?"

Ludwig shook his head, saying it correctly, "It's an old world name," he explained, "From a place that was called Germany-"

"Oh a nice bit of history," Alfred interrupted, knowing talking too much about that sort of thing could get them into trouble. "But enough about the past, what about the future?"

The boy's face fell visibly, as if he'd been cut off while talking about something he loved. He took a moment to gather himself, "The games?" he asked.

Alfred nodded, "Yes the games. You're a big hulking boy? We've seen a bit of stirring in the past few years from the first few districts, kids are training for the games before they start." He held his hand up to the camera, "Which is technically not allowed and I in no way condone," he said plainly, winking at the end of the sentence before turning back to Lud. "I don't suppose you were one of those kids were you?"

Ludwig shook his head, he'd seen a few of those kids in the past, they were all so messed up… "No, of course not. Until now I've been working with my brother and helping provide for my family."

"Aw a family man?" Alfred said with a nod, "Well I'm sure they're looking forward to having you back. So, how do you plan to make it back? How do you plan to survive the games?"

Ludwig chewed his lips, "I…" his face hardened slightly as he forced himself to put on an intimidating voice, trying to remember his plan. "I plan to be as ruthless as possible. I won't let anyone get in my way."

"Wow," Alfred said, reeling from the comment, "Maybe that ruthless attitude is what's given you such a fantastic build," he let out a small chuckle, "The ladies know what I'm talking about, I mean just look at those arm muscles!" he shifted on his chair, "Would you mind showing yourself off?"

Lud paused before nodding, standing up and flexing his arms and chest, gaining a deafening chorus of applause hoots and cheers.

Feliciano looked up at him, entranced by the boy on stage. If only he could be that strong, that ruthless… But… Ludwig wasn't ruthless. He didn't want to be here. For him to be as ruthless as he was acting he'd have to put aside the needs of the girl from his districts, but Feliciano had seem them together, he'd never do that, Ludwig wanted to protect her.

He glanced at the camera, realising now that Ludwig was acting… he didn't think he'd get back to his family, exactly the same as Feliciano. He was pretending so that people would like him more, so that the girl from his district would have a better chance when they teamed up.

That was so… valiant.

Feliciano felt a soft smile spread over his face, his eyes fixed on Ludwig as he sat back down… He felt so much better now.

Alfred wished Ludwig good luck and ushered him off the stage, Ludwig's face fell and paled as he reached the stairs as Feliciano's had, his façade dropping and the reality of the situation coming to him.

Feliciano's smile grew on his face as Ludwig approached him, he reached out to tap the boy's arm as he passed, gaining him a look of disapproval from his cousin, not that he cared. Ludwig jolted to a stop at Feliciano's touch, turning his head with a stern look on his face.

"You did great," Feliciano stated.

Ludwig paused, taking in what Feliciano had said, he gave a small nod and continued on, sitting down in his seat, glancing down next to him and knowing Julia Marie would be sitting there in a few minutes time. He just hoped Alfred didn't talk to her too much about the games.

...

"Did you have fun Julia?" Ludwig asked the young girl as they left their seat, smiling down at her and walking through the dimly lit hall, double file.

"Yeah," she said, smiling and taking Ludwig's hand, "I like that guy, he's funny."

"Alfred?"

She nodded, "He hugs a lot though, I hope I didn't get his germs I don't want to get ill."

"You won't," Ludwig cooed, "People in the capitol are very clean and they have cures for everything. And you have to have a medical check before you go into the arena."

Julia Marie nodded, "Yeah I guess." She frowned, "Everyone seems worried about going into the arena."

Ludwig bit his lip, he'd tried to make it easy for her, but this had been happening every year for… almost 20 years. She would have watched the broadcasts, she would have heard stories, she knew the jist of what she was in for even with Ludwig's attempted protection.

"I'm kind of looking forward to it," she said, looking up at him, "Me and my brother used to pretend to be in the arena, I like the camping and hunting bit. He'd always let me win though." She giggled, her tone tinted with malice, "I used to squish him like a bug."

Ludwig frowned, his stomach turning. He smiled weakly, "…You have to do what's necessary."

"Yeah, be ruthless," she said.

He nodded, "Exactly," he dropped his voice a little, squeezing her hand, "I want you to get home Julia."

They filed into the entrance hall and were greeted by their representatives, Arthur walked up to Ludwig and Julia Marie with a smile, his arms outstretched in a happy welcoming gesture.

"You two were amazing," he said softly, "You hit the nail on the head." The man glanced over his shoulder towards the stage, "Now uh, I promised Alfred I'd take him out to dinner after the interviews, I'll see you up to your rooms and then I'll be gone for the night, is there anything you need?"

Both Ludwig and Julia shook their heads. Ludwig looked Arthur up and down, taking in his shiftiness. "You can go now if you'd like Arthur, we can find our own way to the room."

A large smile came to Arthur's face, "Oh are you sure?" They both nodded, Arthur's smile grew wider as he clasped his hands together. "Thankyou so much, I barely get to see him I'd really like to spend as much time with him as I could."

"Go ahead," Ludwig said with a nod. They watched as Arthur walked off quickly, Ludwig smiled and shook his head, taking Julia's hand and walking with her towards the lift.

Julia Marie glanced back in the direction of where Arthur had gone, "He shouldn't be seeing his friend, he should be looking after us."

Ludwig frowned, he wasn't sure if it was the situation he was in, but if he had the opportunity to spend a night with someone he cared about right now he'd take it. "We don't need to be looked after all the time." He glanced at her, noticing the concerned look on her face. "It's ok I'll look after you," he said comfortingly.

"But who's gunna look after you?" she asked poignantly, frowning slightly as she looked up at him.

Ludwig smirked, "I'm almost an adult I don't need anyone to look after me."

He looked up as the doors opened for the first districts tributes, his brow furrowing as he saw Feliciano walk out. "Wait," he said as the doors began to close, pulling Julia Marie behind him as he left the lift, ignoring the noises of protest from her at the sudden movement.

He reached out to take Feliciano's arm, the boy jolting and looking up at him in a mix of confusion and terror before he realised who it was.

"Oh, Ludwig," he said shakily, glancing back at his cousin and waving her on. "What's um…" he looked past him at the open lift doors, a few pairs of tributes looking back at them disgruntled.

"I just wanted to say thankyou," Ludwig said quietly.

Feliciano nodded, "o-ok?" he said, still confused.

"You'll do fine," the larger boy added before turning back to the lift, his expression stern and intimidating as the other tributes stared at him.

Julia Marie looked up at him, she opened her mouth to ask a question but he shushed her. They waited in silence until the doors to their floor opened.

The girl looked up at him as the doors closed behind him, frowning in confusion. "What the fuck was that?" she asked loudly, "That wasn't being ruthless, that was being nice, you're not meant to be nice to the other tributes. They're not our friends, you told me that. Why can you make friends but not me?"

"Don't worry about it Julia, it's part of my plan." He frowned, "And don't swear, you're only 12 you shouldn't know those words."

"I do though," she smirked playfully.

Ludwig huffed, "It won't help your cute little girl image, you can't swear like that in public."

"I know," she whined as they walked into their shared living room, "I haven't been saying it in public, we're not in public at the moment."

Ludwig huffed, "Ok whatever…" he smiled down at her and patted her back, "Go to bed, we've got a big day tomorrow we've got to get a lot of sleep."

...

The bedroom was dark other than a sliver of light from the moon coming in between the curtains, Ludwig lay on the luxuriously comfortable bed unable to sleep. He'd had trouble sleeping the whole time he'd been in the capitol, he was used to sleeping on a wooden slat bed, not this, it felt like a cloud, there was no support…

And he wasn't used to it being this dark, in his district the housing areas were always annoyingly well-lit so that people couldn't sneak out of their houses after curfew.

He counted down the hours as he lay there, 'if I go to sleep now I'll have 8 hours sleep before I'm woken.'

Then 7.

Then 6.

Then 5.

He forced himself out of bed and opened the door, looking up and down the corridor before walking towards the livingroom, he picked a book out of the large bookcase and sat on one of the standalone chairs, throwing his legs over one of the arms. He figured that if he read long enough his eyes would get tired and he'd be able to sleep.

The book was boring, but that was a good thing right? The more boring the book the quicker he'd get sleepy.

It worked, he jolted awake as one of the doors in the hall squeaked open, he had no idea how long he'd slept, he looked over and frowned, feeling a horrible tightness in his neck.

Alfred jolted as he saw Ludwig's silhouette move in his chair, "Who's there," he said through the darkness, squinting as he walked to the livingroom, he turned on the light and smiled instantly, wrapping his nightgown closer round himself. "Oh," he said, slightly startled, "Ludwig hello, I thought your doors would have been locked by now."

Ludwig frowned, "No, or, I don't think so. I couldn't sleep." His frown deepened, "Why are you here, sir?"

"Oh uh," he smiled, gesturing back to Arthur's room, "Just catching up. You should get back to sleep, I'm gunna… uh, get going." He smiled widely, "Good luck by the way Ludwig, The people love you."

Ludwig forced a smile, "Thankyou, I hope I get some good sponsors."

Alfred chuckled, "Oh I'm sure you will."

Ludwig watched as the man walked towards the door and out into the hall. He lifted himself from his chair once Alfred was gone, walking to his room and trying the door, finding it locked, he grit his teeth and huffed, frowning. Alfred was right, the doors must lock automatically after a certain time.

He walked back to the livingroom and sat back in his chair, hoping that reading more of his book would send him back to sleep.


End file.
